


Good Things

by Odae



Series: gaang modern au [1]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-22
Updated: 2020-06-22
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:02:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,722
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24864253
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Odae/pseuds/Odae
Summary: The gaang takes a trip one summer to the Beifong Summer Villa. Shenanigans, friendships, and even romance ensue.
Relationships: Aang/Katara (Avatar), Sokka/Zuko (Avatar)
Series: gaang modern au [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1799068
Comments: 32
Kudos: 85





	1. Chapter 1

Aang rings the doorbell of the small, white house only for the door to swing open as soon as he pulls his hand back. Katara stands in front of him with a dazzling smile, immediately grabbing his arm to pull him into the foyer. 

“I watched you walk up,” she explains. She lets him go and starts up the stairs to her room. “I just have to finish packing, and I’ll be right down. Two seconds.” At the top of the stairs, she turns and calls back down to Aang, “Sokka’s in the living room!”

Aang smiles as he watches her go and tugs on the straps of his backpack on his shoulders. He hears someone walking toward him, but where he expects to see Sokka, Hakoda appears in the archway leading to the kitchen and dining room.

“Aang,” Hakoda says warmly, coming forward to clasp the young man’s arm. “It’s good to see you.”

“You, too, Chief Hakoda,” Aang replies, grinning broadly. 

Hakoda stands back and looks down at the empty space next to Aang. “No Appa?” he asks of the dog normally at Aang’s heels.

“Appa hates long car rides, so Gyatso offered to take care of him for the week,” Aang explains. “Now that he’s getting older, we just want to do what’s most comfortable for him.”

“Makes sense,” Hakoda says with a sympathetic smile. “How is your grandfather?”

Aang shrugs, but keeps the smile on his face. “He’s managing. I keep asking him to lower his hours at the bakery, but he won’t let up.”

Just then, Sokka walks in bearing a duffel bag over his shoulder. “Hey, Dad, have you seen — Aang!” Sokka rushes over to rub his bald head, even though Aang has grown taller than him in the last year. 

“Hi, Sokka.” Aang laughs good-naturedly as he pulls away. “Are we ready to go?” 

“Almost.” Sokka turns back to his father and asks, “Have you seen my keys? I can’t find them anywhere.”

“Are they not on the hooks?” Hakoda asks, gesturing to where they’re mounted on the wall. 

“My car keys,” Sokka clarifies. 

Hakoda’s face betrays his complete ignorance of their location. “Maybe you should ask — ”

“They’re in the pocket of your blue hoodie.” 

The three men look up to find Katara coming down the stairs, a large tote bag tucked under her arm, and her wavy hair loose and bouncing around her shoulders. She points out the hoodie in question, tossed on a bench under where the family hangs up their jackets, while she steps into a pair of white sneakers. 

“You left them after we got back from dinner last night,” she explains as Sokka fishes through the sweatshirt. 

He holds the keys up triumphantly. “Finally, men, our journey begins!” he cries. He lowers his arm, tossing the keys in the air and catching them, and then flinging the hoodie over his other shoulder. “All right, let’s go.”

They each take turns hugging Hakoda and promising him to drive safely, and then pile into Sokka’s car, a fifteen-year-old SUV, sporting big tires and a fairly high ride height, handed down to him by his father.

“Aang, you sit in front,” Sokka says as he pulls open the driver’s door and climbs up into the car.

“Why does Aang get to sit in the front?” Katara asks even though she’s already seated behind them.

“Because Zuko’s actually going to sit in front,” Sokka replies matter-of-factly, checking his mirrors, “and I don’t wanna fight with you when I have to tell you to get in the back.”

Katara scoffs. “We wouldn’t have to fight.” She grabs the backs of their seats and leans toward Aang. “Aang, trade seats with me.”

“Okay,” Aang says readily. He unbuckles his seatbelt.

Sokka puts his arm out across Aang’s chest to keep him where he is. “Aang, don’t move,” he says. “Katara, he’s 6’3”, you’re going to make him sit in the back where there’s no leg room?”

“ _ You’re _ about to make him sit in the back where there’s no leg room!” Katara exclaims. 

“Uh, guys,” Aang says uneasily, “it’s really no big deal.” The fight is typical of the dynamic he’s been managing since they were all kids.

“See?” Sokka says, finally pulling the car out of the driveway and out onto the road. “Aang says it’s no big deal.”

Aang hears Katara retreat to the backseat with a little huff of breath. 

“Don’t worry, Katara,” he says, craning his neck to look back at her. “I’ll be in the back with you soon.”

Katara smiles back at him despite herself.

It doesn’t take long for them to arrive at Zuko’s house, and as soon as they do, Sokka gives two short blasts on the horn. Almost immediately, three figures emerge from the house. Zuko and Suki wave goodbye to Iroh and begin walking toward the car, while Sokka jumps out and runs over to help grab their bags.

“Hey, Iroh!” Sokka calls out to the older man. He kisses Zuko’s cheek and grabs his boyfriend’s black leather backpack. 

“How wonderful to see you again,” Iroh says kindly. His expression turns analytic as he scans the space between Sokka and the car. “Where is your sister? I thought she was going with you.” It’s no secret that Katara is a favorite of his.

Katara rolls down her window and thrusts her upper body through the new hole in the door. “Hi, Uncle Iroh!” she calls.

He waves at her enthusiastically. “Have a fun trip,” he tells her. “You must be very excited; you are practically glowing, like an early summer moon flower.”

Aang cannot help smiling and agreeing as he watches Katara brighten. 

“Thank you,” she says sweetly. “You look wonderful, too! I hope Zuko’s help at the shop is giving you the chance to get more rest.”

“He didn’t say I was glowing,” Suki hisses to Zuko. After going over to Zuko’s to wait for their ride, she’s just spent an hour bonding with Iroh herself.

“You don’t write your thesis and buy three pots of tea at the shop every day,” Zuko whispers back with a shrug. In a louder voice, he says, “We should hurry. We don’t want to be stuck in traffic.”

“Zuko, where are your manners?” Iroh stops him. “You haven’t asked your friends if they’d like any tea.”

“But, Uncle, we’re about to leave,” Zuko says in a slightly exasperated tone.

“So? It’s no excuse not to offer them a refreshment. You’re in for a long drive.”

Zuko turns to his friends with a sigh. “Would anyone like a cup of tea?” he asks, clearly conscious of his uncle watching expectantly from behind him. 

“I’d love one,” Aang says, popping his own head out of the car, “but Toph just texted me asking if we were on the road yet, and I really don’t wanna see what she’ll do to me if I tell her no.” He waves his phone in the air. “Sorry, Iroh!” 

Iroh raises his hand in the air as a greeting. “It is no problem,” he says with a smile. “You mustn’t keep her waiting.”

“We’ll come by the shop as soon as we get back,” Aang promises, gesturing between himself and Katara. 

“Well, you heard him, team,” Sokka says, leading the charge back to the car. “Let’s not keep Toph waiting.”

Aang gets out of his seat so Zuko can sit next to Sokka, and Katara moves into the middle so Suki and Aang can sit on either side of her. They all wave goodbye to Iroh as the car pulls out of the driveway and heads for the highway. 

“How far is it to Toph’s house anyway?” Suki asks after a while.

“Well, I wouldn’t really call it a house,” Aang says thoughtfully. “It’s more like an estate.”

“It’s the old Beifong summer home,” Katara clarifies, “built over a hundred years ago with their mining fortune. ‘Estate’ might not even cover it —it’s not quite a palace?” She looks to Aang for confirmation. “But it’s as close as you’ll get to one today.”

“And the real question,” Sokka adds, removing his hand from Zuko’s thigh to raise it in the air, his index finger extended to emphasize his point, “isn’t how far it is, but  _ where  _ it is.” 

He puts his hand back, and Zuko smiles contentedly.

“Wait, what?” Suki asks. “Did you just say we don’t know where we’re going?”

Sokka shrugs and glances in his mirror before moving his eyes back to the road. “Don’t worry, I put together the directions,” he says. “Zuko?”

Zuko pulls something out of the glove compartment and unfolds it to reveal a laminated map of the western Earth Kingdom. Roughly-drawn red arrows point to blue circles sketched on top of mountain ranges and lakes, and a looping dotted line has been thrown in, too, seemingly to throw the viewer off any sort of trail. Suki tries to study the markings. Katara sighs when she sees them. Aang takes one look and chooses instead to stare out the window.

“The Beifong summer home sits in a valley between two mountains an hour outside of Gaoling,” Zuko explains. He points to the map. “Here.”

He waits for Suki’s nod before continuing. 

“And we’re all the way over here,” he says, pointing again. “So, we have to go through —huh.” He studies the map. “Oh, we have to go through here. But wait, that’s not right. The Serpent’s Pass? Oh, no, what I meant was here. Or, hold on.” He stares at the map and its markings again, and the only sound in the car is the rush of the wind coming in through the windows. 

“Sokka, this is impossible to read!” 

Sokka gasps. “You called it ‘meticulous’ before,” he says with an accusing tone. 

“Yeah, before I actually tried to use it.” Zuko shakes the map. “How the hell are we going to get there with this?”

Suki leans in close to Katara to whisper, “Boy, am I glad it’s not me up there.”

Katara stifles a laugh into her hand.

“Look, I made the map, so I can read it,” Sokka says with finality in his tone. “It’ll take us right to the Beifongs’ front door.”

“But Sokka, you’re  _ driving _ ,” Zuko almost complains.

“So? I can look over if I need to.” Sokka starts craning his neck to view the map on Zuko’s lap. “I can even keep one eye on the road while I —”

“Sokka,” Katara says sharply.

“All right, all right,” Sokka says, focusing back on the stretch of road in front of them. “Sheesh.”

“Come on, guys,” Aang says cheerfully, “I’m sure we’ll figure it out.”

“I asked if you were prepared this morning, and you said you were,” Zuko continues arguing.

“I was! I made the map!” Sokka cries indignantly.

Zuko shakes the map once more. “How is this prepared?”

Sokka sighs in aggravation. “Look, if you’re so worried, Wan Shi Tong it.”

“What?”

“I said, just look it up!”

“Are you crazy? The  _ Beifong summer home _ is not going to be on Wan Shi Tong maps,” Zuko says almost condescendingly.

A loud beep sounds from the backseat, followed by an automated, wise-sounding voice monotoning, “Starting route to the Beifong Summer Villa.”

Everyone but Sokka whirls around to look at Aang. 

“Hey, look at that,” he says. He holds his phone up with a grin. “They have it.”

Katara laughs out loud as Zuko begrudgingly looks up the address on his own phone. Everyone settles into companionable silence, allowing the sounds of the wind and the automated voice giving directions to replace any conversation. After a while, Suki even begins to drift off, her temple pressed against the glass of her half-open window. Aang watches the trees and the other cars on the highway pass by them, until he feels a tug on his arm. 

He looks down to find Katara looping her arm through his and leaning her head on his shoulder. She tilts her head up when she feels his eyes on her. 

“Is this okay?” she asks. 

Aang nods. “Yeah, of course.”

“Good.” She smiles lightly and lets her head drop back down to his shoulder. “It’s a good thing you’re here,” she says quietly to him, amusement in her tone.

A light blush rises in Aang’s cheeks, and he cannot help grinning. When Katara’s this close, he can smell the jasmine of her perfume. 

“Yeah, good thing,” he agrees. 

The smile stays on his face as he looks back out the window.


	2. Chapter 2

Suki understands what her friends have been trying to explain as soon as they roll into the driveway. 

“Oh,” she breathes, looking out the window. She turns around to look at Katara. “It’s a _villa_ villa.”

An ancient, eight-foot high stone wall stretches in front of them, with a wide set of wood doors that open to reveal the structure they can already sort of see behind it. The Beifong summer home is a stunning example of old Earth Kingdom architecture, an elegant stone structure built around a courtyard on a raised platform. The house’s front holds a wide entryway decorated with enormous pillars, and between its bright colors and delicate construction, the house itself almost looks like a tiered cake. The central section of the building is four stories, and each of the upper floors is surrounded by a wraparound balcony with its own pillars, all pulling the viewer’s eye up to a roof of spotless, yellow, glazed ceramic tiles that shine under the blue of the cloudless sky. 

Everyone in the car takes a moment to gaze up at the edifice, this testament to the longevity of the Beifongs, their symbol of power and endurance. 

Except one. 

“Yep, it’s old as hell,” Sokka says, putting the car into park. He turns off the engine. “Wait until you see the movie theater inside, though. Now _that’s_ something to look at.”

“Sokka,” Katara says disapprovingly.

They all pile out of the car and begin pulling their bags from the trunk when a voice rings out across the courtyard. 

“Look alive, knuckleheads!”

Toph comes barreling out of the entrance in a way that is only possible through years of familiarization, and she stops in the middle of the courtyard. 

“All right, you all have to come to me now,” she says, her arms outstretched.

“Toph!” Sokka cries excitedly. He rushes over to her and scoops her off the stone tiles and into a tight hug.

Toph sounds like she’s choking. “Keep me on the ground, dumbass,” she says, “so I can _know where I am_.”

He releases her, and her feet hit the ground with a slight thud. She keeps a tight hold on his arm. 

“Thank God you’re all here,” Toph says. “My mom didn’t want me to be alone before you guys arrived, so she made Yu stay with me.” She rolls her eyes. “Let me tell you, it has not been fun.”

As if having heard his cue, Yu pops out of the house and starts after Toph. The older man, one of the most senior servants in the Beifong household, looks thoroughly exhausted as he approaches the group.

“Miss Toph,” he calls, “you left your balled melon untouched. If you leave it for too long, it’ll get warm!”

Katara and Aang snicker behind their hands, but they stop abruptly when Toph’s face tilts threateningly toward them. 

Toph ignores Yu’s statement once she hears him stand next to her. “Yu, my friends are here,” she says, shaking Sokka’s arm almost in demonstration. “You can go now.”

“But, Miss Toph, I’m sure your mother—”

Toph sighs loudly to cut him off. “Did you buy the groceries?”

“Why, yes, of course,” Yu replies hurriedly.

“And the rooms are ready?”

“Yes.”

“And the pool’s open?”

Aang feels Katara perk up next to him as she waits for the answer.

“Yes,” Yu says again, and Aang can’t help smiling when he hears a hiss of excitement leave Katara.

“And the bar’s stocked?”

“Of course,” Yu says, now with a slight roll of his eyes.

“And my friends are here,” Toph says with a sweeping motion of her arm. No one tells her she’s just gestured toward a bush. “Now if I remember right, this is the part where you go.”

Yu bows to the group. “You’re right, Miss Toph,” he says. “I hope you all have a wonderful stay here.” 

He turns to go back into the house, but pauses to face them once more with a grimace. “Please don’t break anything this time,” he adds before he goes, too full of worry for his words to have been an afterthought.

“He’s so dramatic,” Toph says with a wave of her hand once he’s gone. “It was just a Quartz Dynasty vase.”

“Right,” Sokka says sheepishly, exchanging a furtive look with Zuko, who’s suddenly taken great interest in the Beifongs’ landscaping.

“All right,” Toph says, tugging Sokka’s arm. “Let’s go to the pool before Katara loses her mind.”

“Really?” Katara cries excitedly, already stepping in line with them.

“It was cleaned this morning just for you, Sweetness.”

Zuko stops them. “Hold on, I think Suki’s still taking it in,” he says in an amused tone.

Suki snaps her head back down and grins self-consciously. “I was looking at the little people,” she says in a high-pitched explanation, pointing to a small, ceramic procession of a dragon, a camelephant, and a winged boar on the eaves of the roof. She grabs her bag and follows them.

They walk clear through the first floor to reveal that the house stands on the crest of a hill, the rest of which tumbles before them as a garden full of sprawling lawns and blooming peony bushes and trees thick with pink and white blossoms. Before the drop of the hill, overlooking the lush green landscape, is the swimming pool full of crystal clear water. As soon as it comes into sight, Katara drops her bag and pulls her shirt off to reveal she already has her swimsuit on underneath, a simple white bikini. 

“Last one in’s a rotten egg!” she calls, kicking off her shorts, and before anyone can say anything else, she’s crossed the grass and the sandstone patio and dived into the pool in one precise, fluid motion.

“That’s not fair, she already put her suit on,” Zuko says. He notices Aang suddenly dropping to his knees, rifling through his own bag and grabbing something before running toward the poolhouse. “And where are you going?”

“I don’t wanna be a rotten egg, Zuko!” Aang yells. The door slams behind him so he can pull on his orange trunks.

Once everyone’s changed and finally joined Katara in the pool, it turns out Toph is the rotten egg, because she refuses to join them in the water. 

“Come on, Toph,” Aang pleads once more.

“You know I don’t like swimming,” she says from the side.

“Won’t you just come to the shallow end? I’ll stay with you the whole time.” He holds his hand up in an oath even though he knows she can’t see it. “Promise.”

Toph considers him for a moment. 

“All right,” she finally says, holding out her hand for him to take. “But if you let me drown, I _will_ murder you.”

Aang only laughs and helps her down, keeping a hold on her hand as they stand side by side in the water.

The wind whistles through the leaves of the garden’s trees and ruffles Suki’s chin-length hair. She plunges under the water.

“We should have a hawk-rooster fight,” she says when she resurfaces. She slicks her wet hair away from her face with her hands. 

“You’re right, Suki,” Sokka says brightly. He turns to Zuko and pats himself on the shoulder. “Zuko, hop on.”

Katara pauses mid-lap. “Are you kidding? That’s not a fair team.” She swims over to Zuko and pulls him by the arm. “Come on, Zuko, you’re helping me beat my brother.”

Zuko sighs as Katara clambers onto his shoulders. “Why does everything have to be a competition between you two?”

“You sound like Bato,” Sokka laughs. “Every game night he—”

“Sokka, quit talking and help me up,” Suki says from his back.

“Sorry, sorry, okay.” Sokka lifts her easily onto his shoulders and plants himself in front of Zuko. 

“Ready?” Zuko asks.

Sokka leans forward and places a quick kiss on Zuko’s lips. “Don’t get upset when we beat you,” he says with a smirk.

Zuko wears a small, dreamy smile as he replies, “I won’t.”

He feels a repeated, urgent patting on the top of his head. 

“He’s trying to distract you,” Katara hisses. “Focus! Do not lose this for us!”

Zuko rolls his eyes and falls into his stance, his hands clasped around Katara’s ankles. 

“One, two, three, go!” Sokka yells shrilly, and Suki and Katara fall into grappling.

Toph crosses her arms. “I think I’d be good at this game,” she says idly.

“Probably,” Aang replies, smiling when he sees Sokka narrowly avoid a foot to the eye— “Jesus, Suki, be careful!” he cries—and patting Toph on the shoulder. “You always beat me up on land.”

Toph snorts. “That’s nothing. Talk to me about how I pinned Sokka last week. Now that was fun.”

They keep watching the fight playing out in front of them, Suki and Katara’s hands intertwined, each trying to push the other off. Both yell at the young men beneath them to hold steady.

“Oh, shit,” Toph suddenly says. “I forgot to ask Yu to pick up ice before he left.”

Aang glances at her before looking back in time to see Suki nearly lose her balance. She recovers and jabs Katara in the shoulder. “I can go,” he offers. 

“You don’t have to,” Toph says.

“No, I will.”

With one more well-timed shove from Suki, Katara goes sailing off of Zuko’s shoulders and into the water in front of Aang and Toph with a loud splash.

Toph pulls herself closer to Aang. “A little warning for the blind girl next time!” she yells in the direction of the group.

Katara comes up laughing, trying desperately to push the hair out of her eyes. “Sorry, Toph,” she says.

“It’s really Suki’s fault,” Sokka points out before plunging under the water himself to let her off his shoulders.

“Wow, nice scapegoating,” Toph says dryly. “No wonder you guys broke up.”

Suki laughs. “Actually, I think it had more to do with the huge crush he had on his best friend,” she says, tilting her head in Zuko’s direction.

Zuko shrugs with an awkward smile. 

Sokka’s head and shoulders emerge from the water. He tugs on his wolftail to stop its dripping. “Are we playing again?” he asks.

“I’m out,” Zuko says. He swims toward the shallow end and hops out to sit on the side of the pool. “I don’t think I can take Katara yelling at me anymore.”

Katara narrows her eyes at him before turning to Aang. “Looks like I need a new teammate,” she says. “Do you want to play?”

Aang smiles at her regretfully. “I would, but Toph just asked me to go pick up some ice.”

“In town?” Katara asks, wringing out her wet hair.

“Yup.”

“I’ll go with you,” she says brightly. She starts making her way toward the pool steps.

Aang’s lips spread into a goofy grin. “Okay,” he agrees. 

Katara towels off while Aang gets Sokka’s keys from Zuko and guides Toph up on the side of the pool next to him. As he rises from being bent over Toph and Zuko, laughing at something Zuko’s said, Katara cannot help staring at him. He’s been taller than her for a long time, so his stature is nothing new, but he’s filled out significantly in the past couple of years, and she does not often get the opportunity to see the evidence in full display. The broad planes of his chest and shoulders practically shine in the late afternoon sun, and the clean lines and ridges of his abdomen contract with his laughter, guiding her gaze further down to the angled cut of his hips, across which his shorts are slung low. 

Katara almost gasps when Aang addresses her. 

“Ready?” he asks, pulling a T-shirt over his head. 

It seems he hasn’t noticed her staring.

“Let’s go,” she replies in a rush, grabbing her sunglasses and following him back through the house and out to the car. 

The doors slam shut behind them, and Katara concerns herself with rolling all of the windows down so they can still feel the summer breeze. Aang checks his mirrors and starts out of the driveway when he notices what Katara’s wearing. 

“Uh, I’m pretty sure the ‘no shirt, no service’ rule still applies all the way out here,” he teases her as he guides the car back onto the winding, mountain road.

“It’s not like I’m not going to wear it at all,” Katara says defensively, though she’s smiling. She holds up her shirt in her hand. “I need to dry off first.” 

Aang glances at her from the road and realizes she means the bikini top, which is more or less still soaked through. If she put the shirt on now, it would only seep through and leave an obvious stain on the front. He turns resolutely to look back at the road, swallowing hard.

The last time he saw her in the white top, with just the two of them together, was on a road trip to Omashu to celebrate Zuko’s college graduation. On the last day before they reached the city, Katara insisted on going to see a little-known cave nearby with an underground spring, and that night, after several cupfuls of terrible Earth Kingdom grain alcohol, raised the idea of going to swim in it again, under the full moon. Aang was the only one who could be convinced to go with her. They ventured back into the cave with a flashlight and turned it off once they got to the pool at the bottom, the night quiet but for the occasional sound of droplets falling from the stalagmites. They stayed close to each other in the dark water, but it was Katara who wrapped herself around Aang, and after a while, pressed her chest to his, separated only by the fabric of her white top. She looked up at him with her half-lidded eyes and boozy blush and only hesitated briefly before kissing him under the silver light of the moon. 

Katara woke the next morning with a wicked hangover, and Aang drove the rest of the way to Omashu with Sokka sitting next to him, any hope of talking to Katara about their kiss drowned out by Sokka’s elaborate stories about another student in his department named Wing Fan. Neither mentioned what happened the night before, Aang wondering whether Katara even remembered it, and it never happened again, so they let it go. 

But Aang remembered it. And if he had asked, he would have known that Katara did, too. 

The winding road lets out to a stretch devoid of surrounding trees, and the glare of the early evening sun hits Aang right in the eyes. He pulls the sun visor down, but the light still shines through and makes him squint. 

“I should have brought sunglasses,” he said absentmindedly, vaguely holding up his hand to see the road.

“Here, have mine,” Katara pipes up, and takes them off to carefully place them on Aang’s face. She giggles at the sight. “They look perfect on you.”

Aang sneaks a grin at her, his gray eyes obscured by the bright blue flowered frames thrifted by Sokka for Katara’s birthday. “Thanks, I try.”

He keeps them on even when they drive into town and walk into the supermarket, Katara pulling her shirt back on on the way in. He refuses even to push them onto his head, looking at the signs above the aisles through the darkened lenses, insisting, “But, Katara, I still need them for the ride back.”

Katara only shakes her head in amusement and pulls him after her toward the frozen aisle.

“Oh, mangoes!” Aang cries, and he stops in the middle of the produce to admire the piles of fruit. “These are Gyatso’s favorite.”

“Should we get some?” Katara asks. “Or any other fruit? Or snacks for the house or something?”

“If you think so,” Aang says noncommittally. 

“What do you want?” she asks. She examines the assortment and wrinkles her nose when she notices the papaya. 

Aang shrugs. “Ah, you know me. I don’t really care what we eat.”

“Really?” Katara asks disbelievingly. “This from the vegetarian who tried to convince Sokka to participate in meatless Mondays.”

Aang laughs. “It was worth a shot.” He picks up a mango. “Besides, it worked on you.”

“Hey, I’m meatless _everyday_ now because of you, and you better not forget it,” Katara says, poking a finger to his chest. 

Aang looks down at her hand, those goofy sunglasses still hiding his eyes, and then grins widely at her. “I won’t,” he says sincerely. 

“Good.” Katara swipes the mango from his hand and grabs one more before taking off again toward the frozen food aisle. 

They drive back to the house in no rush, the ice and the mangoes safely stowed in the backseat. They don’t talk but they don’t need to, the sound of the radio tangling with the air rushing by outside and through the windows. Katara smiles contentedly as she sits next to Aang, occasionally sneaking glances at him, at the veins of his forearm as he keeps his hand on the wheel, and at the angle of his jaw. Before they reach the house, she silently leans toward him and reaches for the back of his neck. His chin tilts up as her touch startles him, and he looks at her quickly out of the corner of his eye, but she feels him relax beneath her hand as soon she tucks the tag back into the collar of his shirt. Her fingertips brush lightly against the back of his neck before she brings her hand back to her lap, and she spies a small smile on his face as they pull back into the driveway of the home.

They’re both quiet, feeling content and a little contemplative, as they walk back through the house. 

“You made it!” Suki cries a little too loudly, standing next to Zuko at the outdoor bar on the right side of the pool patio. Her arms rise above her head, and she reveals a tall glass in her hand that’s now only a quarter full.

“So this is what you’ve been up to while we were gone?” Katara asks in an amused tone. 

“Not all of us,” Zuko says, exchanging a look with her. 

“Yeah, some of us were waiting for ice,” Toph chirps, abandoning Sokka at the pool’s edge to walk up to Zuko. “You promised me a frozen marg, Sparky, let’s go.”

Aang laughs and brings the ice over to Zuko, while Katara balances the mangoes on the countertop. 

Zuko pulls out a blender. “Do you want one, too?” he asks the pair. 

“I will have another,” Suki declares.

“You’ve been cut off,” he replies, only half-serious. He notices Katara eyeing the water again. “As you can see, I do have experience in poolside service,” he says, pointing out Sokka floating idly in the pool, an empty glass near the stone’s edge.

Katara smiles and touches his arm, kissing him quickly on the cheek. “You’re the best,” she says before tossing her clothes off again and jumping once more into the water.

“Katara!” they hear Sokka shriek.

Aang laughs and turns back to Zuko. “Need any help?” he asks enthusiastically.

“Not now that we have the ice,” Zuko replies. He looks at Aang curiously, but before he can say anything, Sokka stops splashing Katara to greet Aang.

“Hey, Aang! Nice glasses.”

Aang’s forgotten he’s wearing them; he blushes once his hand comes up to touch them. “They’re Katara’s,” he explains.

“Cute,” Suki comments before sucking once more on her straw.

Zuko chuckles. “Makes sense.”

Sokka rolls his eyes, and Katara splashes him in the face.

“Aang, are you coming?” she calls. 

“Yeah, just a second!” he calls back. 

He turns back to Zuko and misses the sight of Sokka picking Katara up and throwing her into the deep end.

“Go hang out with her,” Zuko says quietly to Aang, a light smile on his face. 

“Yeah,” Toph says, significantly louder, “go with Katara. And Zuko,” she says, slamming her hands on the countertop, “what is going on? I hear no blending.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Aang says, taking the sunglasses off and folding them carefully next to the mangoes.

“I may be blind, Twinkletoes, but I’m not an idiot,” Toph says, crossing her arms. 

“Toph _sees_ things,” Suki says seriously from her perch on the bar counter. Her eyes widen as she faces the group. “Below-the-surface things.” 

“Thanks, Suki.” Toph grins mischievously.

Aang laughs good-naturedly. “You guys are crazy.” 

Zuko watches as the younger man throws off his shirt and walks toward the pool, only to stop dead at the edge. Katara emerges from below the water’s surface, smoothing her hair back into a thick curtain of waves falling behind her. The soft evening light creates shadows across her form that only soften her curves and make her skin look even smoother. She looks almost ethereal, like one of the benevolent spirits of the sea.

She notices Aang and looks up at him eagerly. “Are you coming in?”

“Uh, yeah, of course,” he replies, shaking himself out of his reverie and finally slipping into the water next to her. 

She grins in delight and holds his hand under the water. “I’ll race you to the bottom,” she challenges him. 

“You’re on,” Aang laughs, and the two disappear into the deep end.

Sokka turns around from retrieving his glass to find himself alone. “Where did they go?” he asks the trio at the bar. 

They ignore him. 

“Twinkletoes just did it again, didn’t he?” Toph snickers.

“Yep,” Zuko says, and he switches on the blender.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am not super sure whether/where to continue this, so if you have any ideas or just want to let me know what you think of it, come let me know on [tumblr](https://koalaotterodae.tumblr.com/)!

**Author's Note:**

> I don't know if this needs an explanation, but "Wan Shi Tong" is Google.


End file.
